New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie discusses the approaching storm Sunday.Photo: AP Photo/The Record of Bergen County

People stand on the beach watching the heavy surf caused by the approaching Hurricane Sandy in Cape May, New Jersey.. (Getty Images)

A man walks on the Atlantic City boardwalk ahead of Hurricane Sandy today. (Getty Images)

ATLANTIC CITY — Atlantic City’s public safety director says most of the city is under water.

Willie Glass says the city is basically flooded and it looks like the damage will be worse than the storm of 1962.

Fire officials in Pleasantville report at least two rescues from homes surrounded by water and two more rescues are under way.

State Emergency Management spokeswoman Mary Goepfert says officials asked about 115,000 residents to evacuate the state’s barrier islands. It’s not known how many heeded the warning.

Goepfert says there are about 2,267 people in shelters statewide.

The Garden State Parkway is closed in both directions south of Exit 38 because of flooding.

Much stronger winds, rain and flooding marked the approach Monday of Hurricane Sandy, on its way to a predicted direct hit on New Jersey, with tidal waters crossing the main oceanfront drive in the south end of Cape May, and streets near the Atlantic City Boardwalk starting to flood.

More than 8,000 people were without power across the state as officials braced for a storm surge that was expected to cause record-breaking flooding.

Thousands of people fled to what they hoped would be safer ground, and shelters were filling up. Towns across the state issued voluntary evacuation orders; some made them mandatory.

Streets were flooding in many shore towns, with water starting to surround some homes near the beach in Ocean City.

Flooding also forced the closure of the Garden State Parkway in both directions south of the Atlantic City Expressway.

The streets of Atlantic City were mainly deserted, and some low-lying areas were beginning to flood, including roads into and out of the resort.

Ron Skinner, a Harrah’s employee who was heading from the boardwalk to the beach, said he was unfazed.

“It is what it is,” he said. “I don’t worry much.”

As the ocean churned behind him, Skinner said he thought the ocean looked worse yesterday.

“It seemed worse yesterday than today,” he said. “But we’ll see what happens later on.”

Tom Foley, Atlantic City’s director of emergency management, said officials were sweeping the city’s low-lying areas, looking for people who were still in their homes. Two shelters are currently occupied, he said.

“We’re anticipating more people coming in as the tide rises,” he said.

While the plywood was tacked onto casino windows, and sandbags sat at the bottoms of doors, the Boardwalk looked like it could come to life at any minute. Neon signs still flashed; lamps were lit and a string of Christmas lights extending from a casino to lamps remained lit. Bally’s even kept its outdoor sound system on; “What You Need” by INXS blared on the boardwalk along with the howl of the wind.

The streets of the city were essentially deserted except for a few vehicles. A check-cashing store was boarded up; a pizza place sat, rain hitting the white facade of the only building on the block. Rain dripped down the elephants in front of the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, and a piece of sign hung from a billboard, swaying in the wind.

A traffic light near the Atlantic City Expressway dangled precariously, turning 360 degrees before giving out. Water still spraying up from a fountain was blown horizontally. On a street where an Associated Press reporter parked, water rose about four inches in a half hour.

President Barack Obama signed an emergency declaration for New Jersey on Sunday, allowing the state to request federal funding and other assistance for action taken in advance of the storm.

Christie, who famously urged New Jersey residents last year to “get the hell off the beach” as Hurricane Irene approached, urged residents of the state’s narrow barrier islands to move to higher ground. He predicted the storm would come ashore at Atlantic City around 2 a.m. Tuesday.

“Don’t be stupid. Get out,” he warned.

More than half of New Jersey’s 590 school districts decided to close for Monday, and 247 districts have decided to remain shut Tuesday, as well.

Sandy was just one component of a massive storm predicted to come together over the eastern third of the U.S., threatening damaging wind, possible record-setting flooding and prolonged power outages. At 5 a.m. Monday, the National Hurricane Center indicated that Sandy had strengthened a bit since last check, with top sustained winds of 85 mph.

“I think this one’s going to do us in,” said Marc Palazzolo, owner of a bait and tackle shop on an inlet to the ocean in Point Pleasant Beach. He used the same wood he boarded up the store with in past storms to secure it this time, crossing out the names of hurricanes Isaac and Irene and spray-painting “Sandy” next to them.

“I got a call from a friend of mine from Florida last night who said, ‘Marc: Get out! If it’s not the storm, it’ll be the aftermath. People are going to be fighting in the streets over gasoline and food,” he said.

Yet Palazzolo was floored by the response to a Facebook plea he issued Saturday night for people to come help him fill sandbags to protect his shop and nearby buildings. Thirty people showed up, many of them strangers. One man drove more than two hours from Bergen County to pitch in.

Christie said a southern-state landfall will cause more flooding in the Raritan River area, while a Monmouth County landfall will result in more extensive inland flooding of the Passaic River.

Atlantic City’s 12 casinos closed for only the fourth time in the 34-year history of legalized gambling here. State parks also shut down.

Residents of northern New Jersey river communities braced for another round of the flooding that has become commonplace for them. Pompton Lakes has been hit by flooding several times in the last decade, most notably last year after the remnants of Hurricane Irene swept through the area and left dozens of businesses and homes severely damaged.

Some in the town were already putting belongings out near the curb, in advance of the storm.

“People are worst-case-scenario-ing it,” said Kevin Gogots, who has lived in the town since the early ’80s. “They’re figuring, divide and conquer: They’ll take the stuff they want to save and put the rest out. Of course, if the street floods again we’ll just have things floating around.”